Solar Panel Installation: Some Factors to Consider

Solar panel installation is one of the best additions you can do to your house. For one thing, you will be able to cut back power costs with free electricity. Moreover, installing solar panels will also add value to your house, helping you in any future sale transaction. Most importantly, solar energy releases less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, making it a greener alternative to electricity generated from fossil fuels. In this article, we discuss all the factors involved in solar panel installation.

The Cost

The cost is obviously the major determining factor in solar panel installation. There are several things that influence the cost of solar panels. Firstly, the silicone used in solar panels cells comes in several grades, and the highest grade is the most expensive. Of course, the highest grade will also give you the most efficient output.

Solar panel cells come in types, such as:

Monocrystalline silicon: This offers high efficiency and good heat tolerance characteristics with a small carbon footprint.

Polycrystalline (or multi-crystalline) silicon: This is the most popular choice in residential installs. Recent improvements in polycrystalline panel technology have resulted in the development of modules equal to or better than many monocrystalline brands in terms of size, efficiency and heat tolerance.

Amorphous (or thin-film) silicon: This uses the least amount of silicon. While some thin film panels are among the least efficient solar cells, technology can help to generate greater output from thin-film silicone as well.

Other Factors Related to the Design of the Panels

Solar panel installation involves some other considerations apart from the silicone quality. For instance, you have to check the tolerance and the temperature co-efficient of the solar panels you are planning to purchase. This means that while the panel is advertised to have a capacity to generate 200 watts, due to weak heat tolerance it may only provide 190. For the most part, you should expect to have this margin of difference in the labeled wattage.

Along similar lines, heat tolerance determines how long your solar panels would last. Quality panels can generate electricity for as long as 20-25 years. Then there is also the issue of the size. The size affects how much electricity the panel can produce. This will not only affect your budget (you have to give double of what you were paying a 100W panel to get 200W), but your space requirements as well. This is because the greater the wattage, the physically larger the panel is going to be. So, if you want to generate the maximum amount of energy, you need to have a lot of free space as well.

Installation Costs

Finally, do not forget the costs of the actual solar panel installation. Unless you have the technical know-how, you will have to hire an installation company. They will usually charge you for the time and effort it takes to place a solar panel on your roof.

You can easily find reliable solar panel companies online that take care of everything from sales to installation.

The number of homeowners going solar over the last three years has now made residential solar power the fastest growing technology in the U.S. energy industry. Let Solar Panels Power show you the best way to go solar.